What kind of jacket to wear?
 

Here is the situation: We are going to be traveling through Rome, Florence, Geneva, Paris and Amsterdam end of December and beginning of January of this year. My husband and I are haing a little debate as to what kind of jacket I should take. Originally I was going to take a North Face winter weather jacket. The plus side of this jacket is that it is waterproof and has a hood. Then, after reading various postings etc. I have been considering a black wool knee length jacket and using a hooded vest underneath if I needed a hood. My husband thinks this idea is unpractical and basically stupid but I feel I will get more use in the long run from this jacket.
What are you suggestions? Am I going to regret not having a waterproof jacket at that time of year? Please help me end this debate with my husband... Thank you!

<i>I have been considering a black wool knee length jacket</i>

It's not clear whether this is really a &quot;coat&quot; or a light jacket. In January I took my black wool gabardine coat--below the knee length. It got quite windy some days and I was glad to have it covering my legs (as well as long boots). With my umbrella, waterproofing wasn't an issue.

As for a hood, I used 2 wool scarves some days: one around my neck and one as a hood.

I would recommend the winter weather jacket/waterproof and hood. Both will keep you warm, and if you are not going to any fancy places, you should be fine with your original choice. ((b))

It is a &quot;coat&quot; and not a light jacket.
thanks for your thoughts..

You may swiftly end the debate with your husband but I imagine the debate will rage lengthily on this board -- between the &quot;Damn the Fashionistas&quot; contingent and the &quot;My dear, what can you be thinking?&quot; brigade .

My bias?

I am not sure what sort of article is both &quot;knee-length&quot; and &quot;a jacket&quot; but that is the one I would choose.

Anything called North Face I would not take to the sophisticated cities you have named.

What would I wear in those cities at that time of year? A very plain, dark-grey, hip-length Loden coat bought in Vienna in 2003, at the wonderful Loden-Plankl shop:

Loden Plankl Michaelerplatz 6 1010 Wien Tel. 533 80 32 [email protected] · www.loden-plankl.at.

I would always take a long coat to any of those cities in the winter. This fall I took a short leather jacket to Paris, and it was ok, but I did see a lot of full length coats in early October.

If you want to stand out, take the jacket. For the most part Europeans wear their ski jackets on the slopes, not in the city. In the central city people tend to dress much more formally than we do here.

We are going to Rome in January and I'm looking at getting a new (warmer) winter coat or having one of my current long coats lined - something I have been meaning to do anyway. I will also take gloves and a pretty scarf and plan on buying more when I get to Rome. I treat trips to Europe as my chance to dress up every day, something I don't have the need or desire to do at home in California.

Take your North Face coat. What nonsense that a North Face coat is not sophisticated enough for big cities. They are quite common in Manhattan and Philadelphia. I used to see John F. Kennedy, Jr. in one all the time (we had the same dry cleaner).

Wear what makes you comfortable and warm. If you are worried about about being fashionable, tie an Hermes scarf around your neck. :) No one will care what you wear.

For Amsterdam in particular, I would want a coat that reached my knees at least. It is windy. If you are walking around all day and it is raining, your trousers can get quite wet if unprotected.

If you are worried about the black wool jacket not being waterproof enough, throw a challis shawl over the sholders or carry and umbrella.

Wearing a coat with a hooded vest is quite fashionable methinks, and practical, because if it warms up, you can just open up the coat and/or vest and be a bit cooler. In Rome, the hooded vest over a sweater may be enough for some afternoons. How about some slouch boots to go with the whole look?

I would pack fleece gloves to keep your hands warm.

I will be taking a black wool coat to Europe this winter - I have a choice of one to the knees or one below the knees, haven't yet decided which would be better. I am also taking a lined but thin raincoat - then if it's a day where it will be constantly raining, I have the choice to take the raincoat instead of the wool coat, just depends on what we will be doing for the day and where we are at the time. Of course, a small umbrella would be an option too.

Hi teach pe;

I am not sensing from you that this is a fashion issue but one of practicality. Here's my story but it was 5 years ago and weather patterns have changed a lot.

I went to Paris for the Christmas and New year's holidays and then some; it was cold beyond belief, yet the water from the rain and sleet was not frozen in the streets or on the sidewalks. There's very little sun in Europe that time of the year; it rises around 9 a.m. and seems to set around 4 but it must be later; and it was quite cloudy and dark.

I brought a ski parka with a hood for cold temperatures-- that was stylish. It simply did not keep me warm. I'm not sure why. I bought a calf length wool coat at Galeries Lafayette and with a layer or two underneath it worked quite well. I also wore sheepskin lined boots and a fur hat. Moisture beaded up and rolled off the wool coat so no waterproof gear was necessary. The truth is that a good fur coat is the best for warmth in Europe.

I grew up on the east coast U.S. and live at 7500 feet altitude and never experienced cold like that winter in Paris. We spent a lot of time in doors sipping hot drinks. Yum. Not so bad!

Anyway, I like your idea of the wool coat with a hooded sweater underneath.

Have fun no matter what you wear! Jane

You need one of those 70's survival jackets.

If you only take one coat and these are the choices, take the ski jacket. You have to have something waterproof. A wool coat can be good too, but sometimes when it rains it's windy too, and you cannot use an umbrella.
Ideally take a knee-length waterproof coat.
Plenty of people wear ski-type jackets in cities. True, in all those cities (except possibly Amsterdam, which is very casual) you will see smart ladies wearing fur or wool coats. They are not travelling though, and can go home and get another jacket if they want to.

You may get lucky, and it won't be as cold; we have been having some pretty strange weather here in Belgium this year. Check the forecasts regularly. Sometimes a wool blazer and warm scarf, with turtle-neck sweater underneath is enough on warmer days.

&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;
For the most part Europeans wear their ski jackets on the slopes, not in the city. In the central city people tend to dress much more formally than we do here.
......
I treat trips to Europe as my chance to dress up every day, something I don't have the need or desire to do at home in California.
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;

it's fine if people want to dress up as a matter of choice but to imply that you will be out of place in a north face jacket is pure fantasy.

from this side of the atlantic, it is very funny to hear americans trying to teach other americans what europeans do or wear. for the most part, this advice is just wrong, cliche and humourous....it's like if people in italy were telling other italians that americans all wear cowboy hats and chaps and that you'd be out of place in a slim fitting european suit.

you will see plenty of north face type jackets all over europe. depending on the situation, i sometimes travel with a wool coat but here are some of the negatives:

-you need to either carry it through the airports and deal with it on the airplane or pack it. it can take a lot of room in your case. if you pack it away, it is not readily available when you land.

-do you want to carry a heavy long coat through museums?

-it can be pretty clunky in general...putting on the back of a chair in a casual restaurant or pub, etc.

obviously people (including myself) wear heavy wool coats all over cities but it's a matter of how much you value function over fashion.

&quot;it is very funny to hear americans trying to teach other americans what europeans do or wear&quot;

Europeans like me post on this board too.

Interesting thread here. I'm leaving for 9 days in Switzerland in a couple of weeks. I was planning to take my fur lined reversible leather hooded zip front &quot;bomber&quot; jacket (which I've taken before) but am rethinking this. I just might do my long black wool coat instead. I don't mind schlepping it around the airports and on the train, really. Add a nice warm scarf, pack an umbrella, and I should be all set. I always dress in layers in Europe in November/December because the weather can change. But I agree with an above post that says that there are mostly grey skies!

Carol

When I was in Paris and Italy in Dec of '04 most of the 20s-30 age women were wearing hip-length white down coats. These coats were not the over-stuff puffy kind but still had a tailored look about them. The &quot;more mature&quot; women were wearing longer wool coats and furs.

Only you can answer this.
What are you planning to wear under it?
Jeans and sweaters? Take the Northface.
Are you going for evenings where you'll want to dress up? Will you feel silly wearing a dressy outfit with a parka?
The real question is; what are you planning to do?

I agree that the style of your outerwear should be guided by what you will be wearing underneath. However, a long black topcoat can lend elegance to jeans and sweaters. It sounds as though your black coat is somewhere between long and elegant and North Face. As long as you take scarves for your head and neck, you should be fine.

I happen to be a duffle coat fanatic. A RL shearling, a red wool w/plaid lining, and a black velvet cover just about any possible outfit, venue or country. You have a hood, but it's a classic look.

i'd wear a black wool coat, i'm just not a 'north face' kind of dresser.

You will regret not having a waterproof jacket for sure.